The invention relates to a garment, in particular an undergarment, for persons in military and civil defense services.
Garments, in particular undergarments, which serve as protection against the cold, have as an essential component a polymer nonwoven, usually a polyester nonwoven. Very good insulation against effects of the weather is achieved with this material, in particular as protection against the cold. However, the disadvantage of the known garments is that they are highly flammable. This means that in military and civil defense services especially, where persons often work or are situated in the vicinity of open flames, such as for example fire department personnel attending a fire or soldiers and civil defense units at an open fire or camping by an open fire, there is a not inconsiderable risk to the persons provided with such easily combustible garments.
The present invention is therefore based on the object of providing a garment, in particular an undergarment, for persons in military and civil defense services which is not as easily combustible, while the good insulating properties are to be retained and, if need be, high wearing comfort is also provided.
This object is achieved according to the invention by the combination of features stated as, for example: a garment, in particular an undergarment, for persons in military and civil defense services, with a first nonwoven of natural fibers or synthetic fibers, a second nonwoven of natural or synthetic fibers and discrete flakes of expanded graphite as a flame-retardant material, which are applied to at least one of the surfaces of the two nonwovens.
It has been found in practice that the combination according to the invention of the two nonwovens with the discrete flakes of expanded graphite creates a significantly improved flame-retardant garment, even though very good insulating properties can be achieved by the two nonwovensxe2x80x94depending on the materials selected for them.
The use of expanded graphite as a flame-retardant material is known in principle from the construction sector as an insulating material, in the home textiles sector as carpeting and in the automobile and filter sector, but in these cases sheet-like formations were always provided as a backing material.
However, it has been found in a surprising way that, discrete flakes of expanded graphite are likewise suitable in clothing as well for providing a garment with greater resistance to catching fire, while at the same time the main property of the garment, that is protection against effects of the weather, in particular protection against the cold, is not impaired.
Polyester fibers may be used as a possible advantageous material for the first nonwoven, which is arranged for example on the outside. For the second nonwoven, which may form an inner nonwoven on the side facing the wearer, polyester may likewise be provided, or else polyamide.
A further significant increase in the wearing comfort is obtained if, in a very advantageous refinement of the invention, it is provided that a membrane permeable to water vapor and air is arranged between one of the two nonwovens and the flakes of expanded graphite.
It has been found that, in spite of the flakes of expanded graphite, breathability of the garment can be achieved if a membrane permeable to water vapor and air is arranged in the way specified. In this case, the connection to the neighboring materials is carried outxe2x80x94at least on one sidexe2x80x94in an advantageous way as adhesive spot bonding, in order that good breathability or water-vapor and air permeability via the pores of the membrane is retained.
The flakes of expanded graphite can be applied to a nonwoven in various ways. In an advantageous refinement, the flakes are distributed in a layer of hot-melt adhesive, which before the heat treatment is in the form of granules. The hot-melt adhesive is then sprinkled onto one of the two nonwovens, for example the second nonwoven, after which the entire item runs over a temperature-controlled section in a calender and is bonded together, i.e. laminated, under heat and pressure.
If designed as a three-layer laminate with a first nonwoven, the intermediate flakes of expanded graphite, which have been taken up in the layer of hot-melt adhesive, and the second nonwoven, the temperature control, and consequently the bonding to form the three-layer laminate, can be carried out in one operation.
If, to increase wearing comfort, a membrane is to be included in the laminated structure, this can take place in a very advantageous development of the invention by the second nonwoven being bonded to the membrane via the layer of hot-melt adhesive with the expanded graphite, while the membrane is bonded to the first nonwoven via spots of adhesive.
An exemplary embodiment of the invention is described in principle below with reference to the drawing, FIG. 1, the single FIGURE representing a detail of part of a garment in cross section, on a greatly enlarged scale for reasons of clarity. The garment may be an undergarment, such as for example an undershirt, shorts or socks.